Kalen DeBoer just wins, making him a perfect, even if unconventional, fit for Alabama as Nick Saban retires

Few coaches have redefined their sports quite like Nick Saban at Alabama. Since winning his first of six national championships with the Crimson Tide in 2009, nearly every peer program has tried to emulate Saban and capture a taste of the magic. But with Washington’s Kalen DeBoer following Saban who is retiring, Alabama is moving away from the formula it popularized across an entire region.

When Georgia replaced Mark Richt, the Bulldogs turned to Nick Saban’s right-hand man, Kirby Smart, to replicate some of the magic. When Tennessee went through a mess of a search, Saban’s defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt came through. So did Saban assistants Steve Sarkisian at Texas, Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss and consecutive Saban assistants Will Muschamp and Jim McElwain at Florida. In fact, nine of the 68 coaches in power-conference football are members of the Saban coaching tree. Eight other former Saban assistants have been power-conference coaches. 

But when it was time to fill the biggest shoes in college football, Alabama instead decided to find a new path. 

DeBoer will arrive to the biggest job in college football without any experience coaching in the SEC. Previously, the Southeasternmost program he ever led was in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. His 2024 recruiting class at Washington featured three recruits from Texas, but none from the South. As a coach and assistant combined, DeBoer has just three years in the power conferences. 

But DeBoer has a mantra that has followed him from his time at Sioux Falls, where it was first popularized by legendary coach Bob Young: “Winners win, because that’s what winners do.” In hiring DeBoer, Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne is betting big that winning supersedes geography. 

DeBoer truly worked his…

Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/kalen-deboer-just-wins-making-him-a-perfect-even-if-unconventional-fit-for-alabama-as-nick-saban-retires/

Author : Shehan Jeyarajah

Publish date : 2024-01-13 00:50:13

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